Nine to compete for Miss Ray County

Nine young ladies have submitted their applications to become the next Miss Ray County, according to pageant executive director Tara Gottschalk.
The candidates will compete for the title, crown and scholarship awards beginning at 7 p.m., Saturday, Mar. 21, at the Farris Theatre in Richmond.
Gottschalk said, &#8220;I&#8217;m pleased to have Chris Stigall from 710 Talk Radio Morning Show as our emcee for the pageant again this year.&#8221;
Stigall will share the stage with entertainment by Tracy Wozny, Shapes Dance and Advanced Acro Competition Team, and Michael Robinson.
Gottschalk said the performances are top notch. &#8220;Michael is returning this year, to perform a song he&#8217;s written. He&#8217;s been in many of the Ray County Community Arts Association&#8217;s musicals. And, if you haven&#8217;t seen the dance teams perform, they&#8217;re wonderful.&#8221;
Each young lady will face a panel of judges in the categories of talent, aerobic/sportswear, evening gown and interview.
The pageant will truly be a Ray County pageant as nearly every town is represented.
Gottschalk was pleased with the turnout. Two young ladies are representing Lawson.
They are: Taylor Cotton and Sunny Bristow. Orrick will be represented by Teresa Cole. Richmond has four candidates: Lisa Thompson, Sabin Millsap, Corissa Johnson and Tammy Prouty. Wood Heights is represented by Jennie Guthrie.
Awards include: Congeniality, People&#8217;s Choice, Evening Wear, Talent, 2nd Alternate, 1st Alternate and the 2009 Miss Ray County, but that&#8217;s not all.
&#8220;The scholarship&#8217;s given during the 2008 pageant were the largest given in the history of the pageant, and the committee is anticipating surpassing these totals,&#8221; said Gottschalk. &#8220;It&#8217;s not just the scholarships. It&#8217;s also the interviewing skills and so much more.&#8221;
Of course, ultimately, the scholarship amounts are greatly determined by the number of people that attend the pageant, Gottschalk said.
&#8220;There will be raffles and things going on during the pageant,&#8221; said Gottschalk. &#8220;We really don&#8217;t know exactly how much money will be available until the end of the evening. At $5 per ticket, it&#8217;s a great family evening. The girls have a lot of fun and the entertainment is great.&#8221;